In The Waiting Line

I had a few experiences the last day which I was thinking about, while listening to the song In The Waiting Line from Zero 7 - good music for such activities.

I was talking to a person a few days ago, and she mentioned her interest in gypsy culture. I find this topic quite interesting, as I try to eliminate my prejudices if possible.

The gypsies at least in Slovakia (though I know about a few neighboring countries, too) are usually treated badly, and not without a reason. There are huge "ghettos" in Slovakia, in which only gypsies live, and if the social system tries to help them, then in most cases the help is abused. For example if they are given new flats, then in a few months they are usually looking like a waste dump. There are also quite often caught in the act of stealing. Bad behavior, violence, stealing a lot of children and not caring are the things most often come in people mind. Though there are exceptions of course people meet those more rarely. It is hard to get forward from such community, which also means, that there are only a very low percentage of them going into universities, if there are any (in the application form for the university there are most of the nationalities living in Slovakia including some which have lower then 1% of the population, but the gypsies are not listed - I didn't pay enough attention, sorry, false information) - in most studies the problems are related to their lack of education and the discrimination against them.
- All this information is subjective, and NOT based on my experience -

But I value the gypsy culture. It is still (though much less today) a part of the Hungarian culture. Gypsy music was a very important part of all the better restaurants in the country before the world wars and the growing popularity of the radio and recorded music. Until today I believe in the significance and beauty of their dulcimer and violin play, which underlines the regions folklore. Also they were moving traders and building special bricks, and other stuff only they knew how to produce. They were a part of the culture in a good way, too.

This second part always fills me with hope, that todays situation may change. Getting integrated into the culture (which must not mean, that they have adopted to the majorities culture, it can be that both cultures have changed to find a compromis).

Getting to the core of the post... The above situation is definitely not unique in Europe, or the world. At this point another TED presentation came in my mind, presented by the finance minister of Afghanistan, talking about the creating of a healthy economical system in a country where the basic conditions are missing. He asked the people in the audience to leave the clean world they are living in and start to think out solutions in a surronding, which works according to different rules. I think that the same principle should apply in this case to, as in many other. The people should stop looking at the situation in their won perspective and open up and be able to change if needed, not just wanting to change something...

But the will to change needs to be on both sides!